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  • Men's cut
  • Medium
  • Edgy

Disconnected undercut

A medium, edgy men's cut with 4–7 in (10–18 cm) on top, finished with a tapered neckline.

Also asked for as: undercut, undercut fade, disconnected haircut, undercut men, disconnected undercut slick back

Top
4–7 in (10–18 cm)
Best on
1A–2C
Recut
2–4 wks
Styling
5–10 min

Traditionally suggested for

Thick, dense or coarse hair (it removes bulk), round or wide faces.

Stylist convention

Who it fits

Hair comes first: these decide whether the shape can hold.

  • Best on 1A–2C hair (straight and wavy).Hair physics
  • Possible on 3A with adjustments; your results name the variant.Hair physics
  • High density only.Hair physics
  • Holds up through a Norwood 2 hairline.Barber consensus
  • Scores higher if you have coarse hair.Hair physics

Who should skip it

Any one of these moves it down your list, or off it.

  • 3B–4C hair (curly and coily): the shape depends on a texture it can't hold, so we rule it out.Hair physics
  • Low-density hair: the cut relies on bulk that thin hair doesn't have.Hair physics
  • A hairline past Norwood 2: at stage 3 it's shown with a caveat; beyond that we hide it.Barber consensus
  • Helmets, hats or daily swimming: they flatten the volume the shape needs.Hair physics
  • A conservative workplace: it reads as a statement cut.Stylist convention
  • Scores lower if you have fine hair.Hair physics
  • Scores lower if you have low-density hair.Hair physics
  • Scores lower if you have prominent ears.Barber consensus
  • Scores lower if you have a receding hairline (Norwood 2+).Barber consensus
  • Scores lower if you have a narrow forehead.Stylist convention
  • Scores lower if you have a wide forehead.Stylist convention
  • Scores lower if you have a long face.Stylist convention

Barbers also flag: Conservative workplaces, bumps on the sides, fine low-density hair, long faces when styled up.

What to tell your barber

The catalog spec, in barber terms. Your own card adjusts it: part side from your crown whorl, curl notes for your texture, and a QR code your barber can open.

Read this to your barber

“#1–2 sides and back, no blending; top 4–7 in; disconnection line at the parietal ridge.”

Clipper guards in this spec (Wahl sizes)

  1. #13 mm
  2. #26 mm
Sides
#1–2 (3–6 mm) on the sides and back, no blending
Top
4–7 in (10–18 cm)
Neckline
Tapered (fades out naturally)
Technique
Disconnection line at the parietal ridge
Product
Pomade or clay
Recut
Every 2–4 weeks

Upkeep and yearly cost

Priced at $30 a cut. Your results use your own local price.

Trim every
2–4 weeks
Per year
13–26 cuts a year, about $390–$780 at $30 a cut
Daily styling
5–10 min a day
Product
Styling product every day
Heat tools
Not needed

Proportions, by face shape

Where the disconnected undercut places in our engine’s geometry-only top 10 for a textbook face of each shape: a top-3 pick for round, square and heart. Proportions are the smallest part of a real score; your hair counts for more.

Where the disconnected undercut places in the geometry-only top 10 for each face shape
Face shapeOn proportions
Oval#8 of the top 10
Round#1 of the top 10
Square#3 of the top 10
OblongNot in the top 10
Heart#3 of the top 10
DiamondNot in the top 10
TriangleNot in the top 10
All haircuts

See the disconnected undercut on your own face before you sit down.

Free analysis first. Previews only change your hair, and if one doesn’t look like you, the redo is free.

Check it on my face